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View Poll Results: makin a poll in the thread where you rate and reviiiiieeeewwwww

not horrendous but pretty average. a few pretty funny cutaways and jokes in the narrative (chris' list of potential jobs, the hats flying off, stewie in flipflops, the ending being cut up by the show's editor) but both plots this week were pretty thin and had abrupt conclusions. plus there were far too many clock-eating scenes, like chris going to class, the grape scene, all the meg musical numbers, and the bread sandwich joke. meh just another forgettable ep to add to the pile. 2.5/5

Stuff I didn't like
"Parents of dumb students say "What?".", though the later callback was a little funny
The entire scene with Brian & Stewie at Neil's house was pretty much pointless.
Kevin attempting to kill himself.
Both crotch jokes

Misc.
99% certain that that was Kimberly Brooks (Buena Girl from Mucha Lucha, Luna from Scooby-Doo and Jasper from SU) as the black sitcom mother.

When I heard about this episode, the first thing to pop into my head was "So... Stewie Loves Lois again?". So in preparation I decided to rewatch the aforementioned episode, albeit I watched the animatic version of it from the Volume 5 DVD set because the whole thing with Meg saving Stewie from choking reminded me of how the latter does the same only to Lois at the end of that early version, which obviously never made it to the final product. Though besides that, the two episodes have virtually nothing in common which I guess helps to make it not come across as a total rehashing.

The main plot was OK. The synopsis made it sound like it'd have a bit more to do with Meg who ultimately ends up feeling like a supporting character in an episode with her name in the title. At least next week's episode judging from the synopsis and promo pics will be more about her than this was.

When I heard of the subplot I didn't expect much from it, mainly because putting up with Chris' current characterization as of the last five years in my eyes he's now just as bad of a character as Quagmire. What makes him hard to put up with to me is how most of the times he doesn't seem to have any purpose in an episode other than to be a snide asshole to someone (Foxx in the Men House and last week's episode being prime examples). And while it's pretty clear these moments seem to have a purpose (point out some of the show's current flaws, albeit in a pretty forced manner), to me all they do is accomplish nothing besides being gags that fail and further fueling my hatred for the character. In short, like Quagmire he fails to gain any sympathy points when the show forces us to side with him because it's outweighed by the times he's been a complete douchebag. In the end, it was harmless enough though ultimately felt like a subplot that'd be best suited for TBS era AD! where it's pretty much roughly three to five minutes of filler because they couldn't come up with enough story for the main plot.

Overall, just like Pal Stewie this episode was pretty much just OK at best which I'll at least take over the dullness of last week's episode. It was somewhat lightweight on memorable jokes both good or bad, though at least the main plot kept my focus most of the time.

2.5/5 rounded down to a 2 for the poll. Here's to hoping next week's episode is better, or at the very least actually has more to do with Meg than an episode that actually had her name in the title!

Not terrible. The plots were pretty bare, but the jokes were decent and it was nice to see underused characters like Neil and Kevin again, even if their scenes were rather unpleasant. The scene where Chris tracks Principal Shepherd with a gun felt more atmospheric than this show usually is. I expected an episode more like Meg Stinks!, so it's hard not to be a little disappointed, but this one was fine for background entertainment, unlike last week's extremely forgettable episode.

Meg's plot had potential, but it suffered from the usual Family Guy pitfalls of overly long gags and too much of a mean-spirited nature. I happened to catch some really old episodes over the weekend, and it drove home just how awful Lois has become over the years. I mean, they've squeezed the empathy and likeability out of pretty much every character post-revival, but man, she truly is horrible. The fact that she never really suffers for it only makes it worse.

There were some funny moments, though. Brian's failed attempt to play it cool when Meg walked in, the potential jobs for Chris ended on a self-deprecating note, and the hats flying off were some of the jokes that stood out. Other than that though, it's another one of those episodes where it's clear the writers are tired of trying and can't be bothered. 1/5

Meg's plot had potential, but it suffered from the usual Family Guy pitfalls of overly long gags and too much of a mean-spirited nature. I happened to catch some really old episodes over the weekend, and it drove home just how awful Lois has become over the years. I mean, they've squeezed the empathy and likeability out of pretty much every character post-revival, but man, she truly is horrible. The fact that she never really suffers for it only makes it worse.

There were some funny moments, though. Brian's failed attempt to play it cool when Meg walked in, the potential jobs for Chris ended on a self-deprecating note, and the hats flying off were some of the jokes that stood out. Other than that though, it's another one of those episodes where it's clear the writers are tired of trying and can't be bothered. 1/5

You hit the nail on the head right here. A lot of these episodes have some interesting ideas that would be very entertaining if they were fleshed out and developed. Of course, every now and then, they have plots that are unsalvageable and should have never been attempted ("The Unkindest Cut"), but a majority of the time, these episodes suffer because they refuse to put in any work. It feels like they give up at the start and just fill in the pages with the most barebones material they can so it can be animated faster.

This episode is a perfect example of that. In the early years, the episode actually would be about Meg and her struggles as we get to see how she reacts to Brian and Stewie's attempts to build her confidence. But we get none of that here. She saves Stewie from choking, he decides to improve her life, the majority of the plot is spent on him and Brian instead of Meg, and at the end, she gains confidence all on her own. Stewie and Brian had nothing to do with it. And we don't even get to see Meg break up with Kevin. It's just something we're told happened. It's like they knew they had a potentially entertaining story on their hands but they didn't want to take the necessary steps to get there. Instead, they would rather waste time on stuff like Chris becoming an Italian, with stereotypical jokes that we've seen on this show (as cutaways, set pieces, AND actual plots) multiple times already. 1.5/5

Also, I thought it was interesting how you talked about Lois' character degradation, because that scene with Neil was a textbook example of how much worse this show has gotten over the years. Literally every joke that was made in that scene had to revolve around him not being able to do anything for himself because it was the Sabbath. It's one thing to do these jokes with Mort because he was pretty much a stereotype from the beginning, but Neil had an actual character. He was a geek in the AV club that was obsessed with Meg. Not the most developed character, but every joke made about him revolved around him being dorky or having feelings for Meg. They took his personal, unique character traits and used them for humor.

Now, because this show is so lazy to the point where writing for non-white American characters is scary to them, they have to avoid any actual human traits to make their jokes work. Neil's Jewish, so let's turn him into a Jewish stereotype! We haven't done that before! Doesn't matter if it makes no sense for the character, stereotypes are always funny!

It's the whole paint by numbers, "Family Guy Bingo" approach. Her'es Joe, so here's a joke about him not being able to walk that's exaggerated in a weak attempt to be edgy. Here's Mort/Neil, so here's a joke about Jewish stereotypes that's exaggerated in a weak attempt to be edgy. Here's a character taking a swipe at another TV show or celebrity that's exaggerated...well, you get the idea.

You know the jokes that are coming (quite often they'll explain them beforehand anyway, just in case you don't) and it's always the same thing; an almost adolescent approach to pushing the envelope and banking on it being funny because it's always funny when people get hurt or are mean to each other, right? That works for a little while, but eventually you're left wanting an actual joke, some kind of wit. Hell, something that actually resembles an entertaining story!

Post-revival Family Guy, at least after the first few seasons, has fallen into the same problem as post-classic Simpsons. There are actually good ideas for episodes and glimmers of really good humour with funny stuff here and there, but the execution is sloppy and the choices are all too often bad. The thing is, I usually get the impression The Simpsons is actually trying, it's just that it's trying to be something it's not and bungling tone, humour, and characterisation along the way. Conversely, it doesn't feel like Family Guy is making an effort at all, and hasn't for some time. The sports analogy I'd use here is that The Simpsons is the future Hall of Fame player who just can't hang it up and has hung around beyond their prime, while Family Guy is the promising star player who peaked, got a fat contract, and then stopped trying because they're set to make a ton of money for years to come.

You know, earlier today I was thinking about how this episode could possibly be a poor man's version of Leggo My Meg-o in terms of episodes where Meg feels more like a supporting character despite her name being in the title. Because unlike this episode, that one at least had stuff happening in it and didn't waste three to five minutes of it's runtime of Italian stereotypes that've been overdone on this show.

Sorry but this was a huge let down. This had potential but instead it chicken out. Meg was more of guest star in this one. Even though Chris'es story was mildly enjoyable, it was bad due to tired Italian stereotypes Peter sitting on Meg and Lois being a bitch again pissed me off. I hope that was only for this episode only because the show was doing so well without the Meg bashing. I hated Meg performing those solo shows and Stewie popping up at the end was stupid. Bringing back Neil and Kevin couldn't help save it. They were characters who are 1 dimensional and never got to grow. Neil is use for nerd and Jewish jokes. The Sabbeth joke was a great example. Kevin could have been good but he was suicidal and didn't grow when he came back. We could have seen the breakup instead of Meg mentioned it. Brian could have been cooler instead of being overacting. It was nice to see Meg happy at the end but still this was a huge pile of crap. It gets a 2. Now, next week could be the Meg episode we've been waiting for. I saw promo pictures of Meg in the Winter Games and they look awesome! Lets' hope she is the star and it'll be better than this one.

Yeah they gave Brian and Stewie a little more screentime for an episode with Meg in the title. At least the whole family got some spotlight.

It was a fine episode, though, just a bit underwhelming (that ending was lazy, like seriously writers? Can you stop announcing the viewers that you're running out of time to finish the episode because IDK you're busy dragging out scenes or saying to cut to commercial breaks)?

Like I said earlier, the worst jokes they made in season 17 involve the fourth wall. I bet Deadpool would be ashamed...and the best jokes they made so far are usually one-liners or cutaway gags? At least most of the Griffins are well written so far in this season, just hampered by rushed endings and inconsistent comedy.

For an episode titled Stand By Meg, you'd expect Meg to be in the reign here, right? Nope, not this time. The writers apparently were on meth or something because Brian and Stewie (AS USUAL) sure as hell hogged the episode like they always do!

My god, I could think of all things to do with Meg and Stewie. Perhaps have Meg and Stewie pull out battle plans to kill Lois? A duet featuring Meg on a drum set (or a snare drum at the very least, Peter said she had a drum solo when she was almost a year old) and Stewie on guitar or piano or something? Or how about them going back in time to- OH NO don't you put that into my mind! I mean come on, that's just a few of the ideas I could easily write up if I was on the show.

Overall I don't have much to say on it, but that's because I saw it once. I don't know if I'm even going to torture myself to watch a rerun of this episode.